Indian data card market sees 18% decline in Q1 2018; JioFi maintains lead

According to CMR's India Data Cards Monthly Market Review for March 2018, Reliance Retail JioFi continued to be on the top spot in the overall data cards market.

However, its shipments witnessed 24 percent decline when compared to the previous quarter.

On the other hand, Huawei witnessed 9 percent sequential growth in terms of its unit shipments due to the growth in shipments of its two popular models E3372H-607 and E5573Cs-609.

CMR said that Huawei and Alcatel collectively contributed 24 percent to the overall market share and the overall market was confined to just four vendors by the end of 1Q CY2018

Reliance Retail's fast-moving JioFi model JMR541 captured the top spot with 49 percent market share, CMR said further.

Reliance Retail will continue to dominate on account of its strong user base with attractive internet plans attached to its MiFi models," Shipra Sinha, Lead Analyst, CyberMedia Research said.

Meanwhile, the report pointed out that the Indian Data cards (USB & MiFi) market witnessed 18 percent decline in 1Q CY2018 when compared to the 4Q CY2017.

"With 1Q 2018 being the end of the financial year vendors were busy clearing the previous stock than focusing on the fresh imports. Also, Reliance Retail imported huge shipments in January which gradually decreased by the month of March for the same reason. This automatically slowed down the market at the end of 1Q," observed Shipra Sinha added.

She said that "MiFi devices with inbuilt battery and portability will continue to rise capitalizing on the limited coverage of Wi-Fi routers and continuous power requirement by the conventional fixed-line broadband."

Expansion of high-speed internet user's day by day and advancement in the telecom infrastructure and technology will make way for LTE/4G based device category to rule. With the advent of the new financial year, 2Q CY2018 is expected to witness the rise in sales, Sinha added.

To recall, Mukesh Ambani-owned Reliance Jio has launched a new offer in which the company is offering 100 percent cash back offer with its JioFi router.

According to the company's website, the JioFi device allows multiple users and mobile devices to access Jio's 4G high-speed internet connectivity and create a personal Wi-Fi hotspot.

The LYF-powered JioFi device can connect a minimum of 10 devices + 1 USB connection, with some models having the ability to support more connections.

The company has introduced two new plans. Under the first plan, the JioFi router getting a Rs. 1,005 exchange offer in this the users can exchange their data card, dongle, router and in return they will get 4G data worth Rs. 2,010, but there is a catch as the user will be required to pay Rs. 1,999 with a mandatory first recharge of Rs. 408, which is Rs. 309 for the plan + Rs. 99 for the membership which ensures freebies for 84 days.